


More Than Our Numbers

by Le_kunokimchi



Series: Together We're a 10/10 [5]
Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Academy days, Ben Hargreeves Needs A Hug, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Good Sibling Klaus Hargreeves, M/M, Names, Pre-Canon, Protective Klaus Hargreeves, Sibling Bonding, before ben's death, number lore
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-05
Updated: 2020-04-05
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:14:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,941
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23491501
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Le_kunokimchi/pseuds/Le_kunokimchi
Summary: "I hate the number six. It's the number of the devil, of the beast... I'm named "The Horror" and coined as evil... maybe they are right, maybe I'm no better than the creatures inside me...""Four in Mandarin is 'Sì' and is feared by the Chinese because it sounds a lot like the word 'Sǐ' which means death... Although I do communicate with the dead, I'd rather not be known for death."Their numbers may carry some negative assumptions, but the meanings of their names make up for it.
Relationships: Ben Hargreeves & Klaus Hargreeves
Series: Together We're a 10/10 [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1678948
Comments: 11
Kudos: 167





	More Than Our Numbers

**Author's Note:**

> Brother bonding and fluff for little Ben and Klaus.

The bond between Four and Six was an unusual one.

The Hargreeves children weren't typically focused on relationships with each other, they were each trying to be better than the other or themselves. They were rivals, raised to be competitors, not family members.

One had a stick up his ass because he was "the favorite".  
Two was envious of One because he was the "second best".  
Three admired number One but was very self-absorbed and focused on her own success.  
Four was seen as the weakest among the supers; he was ignored and secluded, ironically spending more time screaming at the dead than laughing with his siblings.  
Five was arrogant and beyond his siblings' "intelligence"; his brothers and sisters were seen as nothing more than variables in time's grand equation.  
Six was introverted, shy, and quiet; he was consumed by self-hatred and read books as a form of escapism.  
Seven pitied herself and was jealous of all of her siblings' extraordinary gifts, choosing isolation rather than fruitlessly trying to fit in.

The difference between Six and Four and the rest of the supers was that they both despised their abilities. They couldn't be more different personality-wise, polar opposites in interests and hobbies... but they thought their powers were more of a curse than a blessing and had no desire to kill another human being no matter how "bad" they were. They had some unspoken friendship from this, a bond that was like a mutual agreement to be there for each other because nobody else understood what they were going through.   
Six protected Four from the monsters around him.  
Four protected Six from the monsters inside him. 

This is how it always was, mutual reliance; that was until Four found better comfort in drugs to drown out the voices. He stopped coming to Six in the middle of the night for protection, became even more outcasted and even less interested in forming a relationship with his siblings. Six, on the other hand, watched as he was no longer needed and ironically needed more help than ever before. The eldritch horrors in his abdomen only grew more persistent to get out the older he got, the pain increasing as he became more defiant to release them... Six never wanted to have the highest death toll in the family. He never wanted to be nicknamed "The Horror". 

So while he laid in bed, whimpering in terror as his dreams quickly morphed into nightmares, his first instinct was to flip over and hug his brother tighter to his chest. But when he subconsciously turned to grasp him, he was met with nothing but empty sheets. Where'd he go? He was dead, huh? The Horror killed him just like everyone else in his dream. They're all dead. He's alone. All dead. Alone. It's dark. He feels hot. Dead. Alone. He failed them, all of them. They are dead. Number Four is dead. He's-

He woke up with a start. His breaths came out in heavy pants and frantically glanced around the room. He's awake now, shouldn't Four be here? Where was he? Oh, the thought finally dawned on Six, he's probably asleep in his room; he doesn't need me anymore. 

The boy laid back down in bed, finding himself shiver despite his forehead being covered in sweat. He wanted to cry but he knew he was too old to be weak like that. He wanted Number Four but knew that The Seance hadn't left his room since Grace gave him his name earlier that day. He was probably doped on drugs... but that meant that he wouldn't care enough to chase him out, right? He probably wouldn't even remember him coming in, right? He could keep his dignity and Four could keep his cold, distant demeanor. No, that's taking advantage of him... Four wouldn't do that to him, maybe he should just lay back down and try to go back to sleep-  
As if on cue, he felt a tentacle slither beneath his skin as the eldritch stirred. And up he went, out of bed, bare feet pressing to the cold hardwood floor. He shivered but grabbed a pillow anyways and promptly left the room, only one destination in mind.   
Unless he's dead- no. It was just a dream. A DREAM. Four is fine, he has always been fine.

He found himself stop outside of his brother's door. Was he really going to go in there? What the heck is he thinking? But it was too late, his hand was already turning the knob. He peeked his head inside, seeing The Seance curled up in bed with his back to him. 

He was asleep, he wouldn't even notice I'm here, he told himself.

But as he laid next to his brother and placed the extra pillow under his head, he noticed Four stiffen ever so slightly. His breathing gave away that he wasn't sleeping, but that was ok. Six didn't really want to be in there either... At least he wasn't being kicked out.

"Sorry," the sixth Hargreeves mumbled, "I had a really bad nightmare."  
His brother didn't respond, but the smaller boy noticed that his body relaxed slightly into the mattress. 

"I didn't know who else to come to..." he continued, feeling his eyes water, "I just thought that since you used to come to me when the ghosts got bad, you wouldn't mind if I came in here."

There was still silence, but Four's shoulder twitched.

"I had a dream that the Horror killed everyone," he was rambling now, tears sliding down his cheeks, "And when I woke up, I found myself looking for you."  
He gave out a bitter chuckle as he sniffed, "It sounds stupid now since we haven't slept together in years, but I guess some things are just out of habit."

Six couldn't see it, but Four's eyes were opened now. The taller boy stared at the wall, feeling guilty and pathetic for ignoring his brother but yet made no move to reply.

"I used to save you from the horrors of the undead, but you can't save me from myself, huh? I'm just another monster in your room, here to talk your ear off and burden you with my existence." He hiccuped, feeling Four tighten his hold on the blankets. 

"You know, I was so happy when we got names today. You wanna know why?" Six paused, not expecting Four to reply.  
"Because," his voice cracked in heartbreak, "I hate the number six. It's the number of the devil, of the beast... I'm named "The Horror" and coined as evil... maybe they are right, maybe I'm no better than the creatures inside me..."  
His voice dropped to a whimper, "I never wanted to kill anyone... I want to be Ben, not Six. I want to be a brother, n-not a murderer."

Tears were now falling from Four's eyes as he listened, realizing that he didn't even stick around long enough to hear his brother's name be given. He felt horrible.

Ben sat up, feeling ashamed, "I'll just go, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have come in here. You have enough atrocities to deal with-"  
"Do you know what the name Ben means?" Four asked quietly, waiting for his brother to lay on the mattress before he continued.  
The boy sniffed as he settled back down, watching the rise and fall of his brother's chest.

"It means good," he paused, waiting for the calm ghost in the corner that said her son was also named Ben to continue her explanation, "Boys with this name are amazing, sweet, quiet, and funny."  
Ben choked on a wail, never hearing such words used to describe him before.

"And I think you are all of those. Not the number six, not a beast or a monster... You are good. And you're not just my brother but my best friend too. You have a pure heart and the ability to be your own person, and no matter what you choose, I'll always love you the same."  
By now, the smaller boy was full-out sobbing, pressing his forehead to Four's back. If his brother was in a better emotional state, he probably would have joked that his wailing was starting to sound like the ghosts around him.

"You know, I never liked my number either," Four said softly when the sobs quieted into sniffles.  
It was quiet for a few moments as the boy took a deep breath to collect himself. "R-Really?" Ben squeaked, grimacing as he noticed the snot and tears staining his brother's back.   
"Yep," he flipped over, finally facing his shy brother for the first time tonight, "Four in Mandarin is 'Sì' and is feared by the Chinese because it sounds a lot like the word 'Sǐ' which means death... Although I do communicate with the dead, I'd rather not be known for death."  
Ben giggled softly, "Is that why you live a wild party life? To be living in the moment?"  
"Okay, okay, no more life jokes," he replied with a roll of his eyes and a fond smile, "But honestly, I'm glad we got our names because anything is better than a number. I'm sorry that I wasn't there for you when Mom gave you your name..."  
The smaller boy gave a frown as he hugged his brother tight. "It's fine, you have your own stuff going on now; I can't expect you to always be-"  
Four returned the hug, snuggling his head onto Ben's shoulder, "No, stop, you're being too nice. No excuses: it was an important day and we should have spent it together."

"Well, you can make it up to me. Starting with telling me your name now, unless you wanna keep going by number Four."   
Four took a deep breath before muttering, "Klaus."  
"Klaus..." Ben repeated in thought before smiling, "German, right?"  
The curly-haired boy nodded. "Wanna know the meaning? Little armless Sammy told me earlier."

"You're sober?!" he baffled, a huge grin beginning to spread across his face.  
"Well yeah, I wouldn't wanna be high on a day like this. I actually want to remember my name," Klaus replied with a snicker, deciding that now he does not regret staying sober today; some of the ghosts actually came in handy.  
"I'm proud of you," Ben whispered, "So what does 'Klaus' mean?"  
"It means someone that devotes themselves to the greater good; 'the people's victory'. Pretty cheesy, huh? Not much greatness I can do as a look-out."  
"Well, I like it. You sacrifice your sanity for the greater good all the time. You also give up your sleep to comfort messes like me." He pulled back from the hug to look Klaus in the eyes and gave an appreciative smile. "Really, Klaus, thank you for everything."

Four gave a toothy grin before shrugging, "We're all hot messes, Benny. I'm just glad I can be here for my favorite brother."

Six shook his head fondly at the nickname. "You're my favorite brother too, Klausy."  
A comfortable silence settled between them as sleep called their names.   
But before they could answer the beckoning, Klaus commented, "Six and Four... Together we make a 10 out of 10."  
Ben snorted. "So much for being more than our numbers. Still, everyone else can suck it."

They laughed together and closed their eyes, forgetting the monsters that troubled them. Because even though they may not spend as much time together as they did before, they were still best friends that would be there for each other no matter what. And for the first time in a while, both boys got a good night's rest.


End file.
